| Magnitude | 5.1 |
| Alert | Strong |
| Depth | 272.0 km |
| Coordinates | 38.794, 14.822 |
| UTC time | 1973-12-20 17:44:25.800 |
Earthquake details
Thursday, December 20, 1973 Earthquake
The earthquake hit Italy on Thursday, December 20, 1973 at 17:44 UTC with a magnitude of 5.1. The closest known location in the current dataset is Milazzo (Italy - IT), about 73.5 km away. The epicenter is located at longitude 14.822 and latitude 38.794.
| Location | Messina |
| Country | Italy (IT) |
| Severity | Strong |
Earthquake map 1973-12-20
Closest countries
The 12 closest cities near the epicenter.
| Milazzo | 73.5 km |
| Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto | 79.7 km |
| Messina | 92.3 km |
| Reggio Calabria | 105.6 km |
| Adrano | 125.8 km |
| Lamezia Terme | 130.3 km |
| Acireale | 135.3 km |
| Cosenza | 135.9 km |
| Paternò | 136.8 km |
| Mascalucia | 137.2 km |
| Bagheria | 139.2 km |
| Misterbianco | 143.0 km |
Nearby earthquakes
The latest 8 earthquakes within 100 km of this epicenter.
|
M 4.5
Catania
Italy · 2026-03-04 06:05 UTC
|
153.7 km |
|
M 4.2
Acireale
Italy · 2026-01-18 13:54 UTC
|
94.1 km |
|
M 5.1
Messina
Italy · 2026-01-10 04:53 UTC
|
163.2 km |
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